what recession

[Froggyswife]

I've had one credit card my whole adult life when I finally got that $800 paid off I cut that thing up and refused to EVER get another one. That was back in the late 80's I finally paid it off in the early '90s that $800 cost me $2,000 in the end with interest and hidden fees. NO THANKS. If I want something on credit I get a loan from a bank at a fixed rate. I do have a debit/visa card I can use the visa as a credit out of town or to make reservations but only if I already have the money in the bank to cover the purchase. I like it that way. Thanks to this old fashioned way of thinking I have NO credit card debt only thing I have finaced at the moment is my car, house and air conditioner.$30,000 would pay everything I owe off.

I've said it before and I will say it again. Credit cards are nothing but legalized loan sharking. 29.9% interest PAAAALLLLESE.

 

[rentayenta]

It's nice that some people are not feeling the effects of the poor economy but that does not mean there isn't a recession going on.

I agree with the PPs who said just because people are buying doesn't mean they have the actual money to spend. It's called buying on credit.

DH is a and they are closing stations all over the country. That happens during a recession. DH's dept had stopped the plans for a new station. Recession. When public servants are losing their jobs you know we are in trouble.

 

[Slapstick]

I will not be spending near as much and told my family so already. People should be adding to their savings not adding to their credit debt. If a salary is lost due to a lay off, how long will you be able to survive?

Disney is a good indicator. Not only are they giving away the farm, they advertised the other day the 7 for 4 promotion on TV..When did they ever have to do that? They obviously can't fill the rooms. Staff will be laid off, housekeeping will suffer, maintenence will suffer and so forth and so on. It is a reflection of the deep doo doo this country is in.

 

[mhsjax]

I've had one credit card my whole adult life when I finally got that $800 paid off I cut that thing up and refused to EVER get another one. That was back in the late 80's I finally paid it off in the early '90s that $800 cost me $2,000 in the end with interest and hidden fees. NO THANKS. If I want something on credit I get a loan from a bank at a fixed rate. I do have a debit/visa card I can use the visa as a credit out of town or to make reservations but only if I already have the money in the bank to cover the purchase. I like it that way. Thanks to this old fashioned way of thinking I have NO credit card debt only thing I have finaced at the moment is my car, house and air conditioner.$30,000 would pay everything I owe off.

I've said it before and I will say it again. Credit cards are nothing but legalized loan sharking. 29.9% interest PAAAALLLLESE.

From your mouth to my Dad's ears. lol. Hey are you sure you aren't my dad? ha ha. All joke aside, he was the same way and he had more money in the bank that most people I know, he didn't make a huge salary, and he was choosey about what he spent his money on, and he made suree he had the cash to pay for it. I hope to be like him one day.

 

[mhsjax]

From your mouth to my Dad's ears. lol. Hey are you sure you aren't my dad? ha ha. All joke aside, he was the same way and he had more money in the bank that most people I know, he didn't make a huge salary, and he was choosey about what he spent his money on, and he made suree he had the cash to pay for it. I hope to be like him one day.

And by your name i realize that you are not my dad. you just sound so much like him.

 

[C.Ann]

Ummm.. Christmas is coming and there are plenty of foolish people out there who will be charging to the hilt and worrying about how to pay for it later..

The length of lines anywhere is not indicative of whether or not we're in a recession - headed for a recession - or people actually have money to spend..

Wasn't it after last Christmas that all of the bankruptcies and foreclosures began?? Hmm.. Wonder why?

 

[Colleen27]

I don't think holiday shopping is an accurate indicator of economic conditions. People will move heaven and earth to shield their children from financial realities around the holidays, and many, many children of parents who really can't afford any discretionary spending will still wake to presents under the tree on Christmas morning. And those parents will tell themselves that it'll be okay and they'll pay off the charge card or catch up the bills they let slide come tax time.

 

[minniecarousel]

Hey, if you've got a stable job - please SHOP! Do the rest of us a favor.

My immediate area of the Bay Area hasn't been hit as hard as some other areas. (some other suburban cities near-by, saw fast growth - they're the ones with the most foreclosures now.) So, it not only varies by state, but by neighborhoods/cities.

 

[eliza61]

last year at this time, i commented that i didn't think things were as bad as everybody was saying because of the massive lines of people waiting to buy wii consoles.

i stand by that statement. as i waited in line today with lots of other people to buy wii fits. so, i know that some are feeling the effects, but it seems that people still have plenty of discretionary income.

The key word is "discretionary". I've heard quite a few people who feel they might as well charge since things are already so bad.

Credit cards are still working just fine....

Went to the cherry hill mall today, empty!!

Also remember that a lot of stores are still losing money simple since they have to cut merchandise down 50, 60 even 70% to get people to buy.

 

[C.Ann]

Credit cards are still working just fine....

--------------------
Exactly!

People will go to any lengths to spend money for Christmas - even if it means skipping a mortgage payment; skipping the electric bill for December; skipping a car payment; using credit cards until they're maxed out; etc..

 

[ChrizJen]

People are not very smart! I cant tell you how many foreclosed homes I have looked at that were loaded to the hilt with "toys".

People don't have priorities these days......

God forbid we ever do hit really hard times. Most people wont know how to adjust!

This is what I was thinking. My guess is that it's not so much "discretionary money" that people have as much as it is a "discretionary money attitude". I think that people have just gotten to the point where if there's something they want right now, they get it whether they have the money to pay for it or not. They may not be feeling it in line at the store, but you can bet they're probably feeling it in the privacy of their own homes when the credit card bill comes and they can't figure out how to make the payment.

And it also very much depends on where you are.

 

[clutter]

I think it depends on where you are located. In my area (Northern VA) it seems no one has gotten word of a recession. Of course, my area is heavy in government employees and defense contractors - they seem to be doing okay. While our housing values have fallen it's not bad as long as you are not trying to sell right now. It seems some areas are more hard hit than others.

While I agree that we're fairly recession-proof, I disagree that no one is slowing down here. Most restaurants are only full on weekends, and even then the lines are much shorter than a year ago. I know that home services are hurting. Anything tied to the real estate industry is down. My friend's husband is a dentist and his business is way down as well. I think we're seeing a reduction in the extras here, but we're still seeing it.

 

[C.Ann]

Also forgot to mention that I got a call from my sister (who lives in Florida - as does my brother) and she told me that my brother had just bought a new house.. I was pretty shocked because I had talked to him less than a month ago and he said nothing about moving or even looking..

So why did he suddenly buy a new house? Because the price had dropped to half of the original value and was just too darn good of a deal to pass up.. Luckily he has the funds to take advantage of a situation like that, but it's just another indicator that people are becoming desperate when they will sell their houses at such a huge loss..

 

[ReneeA]

I'm in Michigan. Apparently many didn't get the memo.

The mall and all of the stores parking lots were completely packed the past several days. Unless these folks were just driving to the stores to window shop, I think that a lot of commerce is taking place.

You must be in a different area than me, then. We went to Red Robin for dinner one night a few weeks ago - Saturday night at 6pm. Almost half the table were empty, and there was NO wait.

We also have had tons of stores close - probably 1/4 the stores in the malls around here have closed. I though the Friday after Thanksgiving was pretty busy, but not nearly what it has been in previous years. I also thought many probably ventured out for the great deals that day instead of waiting and paying more later in the season.

 

[mikehn]

I am up to my eyeballs in debt. But who cares, cause there's a bailout with my name written on it.

 

[arminnie]

If you speak to anyone in the mortgage, real estate or banking industry they would say your wrong.

Actually not in all areas. I talked to the following over the holidays: mortgage bank employee, real estate appraiser, home builder (2), and a couple of bankers. They all say that stuff takes longer and that business is not booming - but it is really okay here.

Exactly why it all depends on the location. In areas where more people have lost jobs, median incomes are lower, gas prices are higher.....it very much feels like a recession, whereas in other areas, it may not be so bad. I think thats the most important thing to remember, just because the area that one person lives in may have packed restaurants, doesn't mean that the entire country is fine and dandy.

And vice versa. Some of the country is okay.

It's nice that some people are not feeling the effects of the poor economy but that does not mean there isn't a recession going on.

I think there is a recession going on - and probably a real depression in Michigan right now. I know this board is more heavily populated by people from the eastern portion of the U.S. - but many of us in fly-by territory are just chugging along. We never really had the big upswings, so we are a little more isolated from the downs too.

My home in Little Rock (big house nice neighborhood) hasn't gone up $100,000 in the past decade - so it also hasn't really dropped any recently either. My ex-home in California has gone up about $100,000 in 8 years.

In many areas (like Florida but not Michigan) the home prices soared for a few years. Prices often doubled. Much of that has gone "poof". I feel very sorry for people who bought at the peak. It's happened to me. It's awful.

 

[LotsOfQuestions]

last year at this time, i commented that i didn't think things were as bad as everybody was saying because of the massive lines of people waiting to buy wii consoles.

i stand by that statement. as i waited in line today with lots of other people to buy wii fits. so, i know that some are feeling the effects, but it seems that people still have plenty of discretionary income.

Pretty naive if you ask me.

Let's just ignore all the real indicators that we are really in a recession because there are people buying wii fits.

Companies and banks failing right and left, unemployment at 10% and jobless claims up, consumer confidence at a record low, record deficit and debt,

yeah, let's just ignore all this because people were standing in line for a wii fit.

I suggest you educate yourself on economics and then tell us the country and the world is just rosy right now.

 

[OhMari]

The key word is "discretionary". I've heard quite a few people who feel they might as well charge since things are already so bad.

Credit cards are still working just fine....

Went to the cherry hill mall today, empty!!

Also remember that a lot of stores are still losing money simple since they have to cut merchandise down 50, 60 even 70% to get people to buy.

In August/Sept. the retailers really felt the effect with no one shopping. We refused to shop with clothes so expensive. Aeropostle, American Eagle, Gap, wanted $60 for jeans, that used to run $18-$24. There was no way, we were going to pay that much.

Guess what all those jeans, are now down to that range, plus you got 25-30% off this weekend, plus the sweatshirts and other tops.

So, if your kids were like mine, we just waited for the prices to come down. Yes, we are hit by the economy, but we knew to save our money, till the clothes came down to a reasonable price, in which it did this weekend. We probably won't shop for clothes again till June for some summer clothes.

 

[Christine]

While I agree that we're fairly recession-proof, I disagree that no one is slowing down here. Most restaurants are only full on weekends, and even then the lines are much shorter than a year ago. I know that home services are hurting. Anything tied to the real estate industry is down. My friend's husband is a dentist and his business is way down as well. I think we're seeing a reduction in the extras here, but we're still seeing it.

I kind of agree that there is some difference.

I was out at Tyson's Corner today and while there were a good amount of people in the mall, I never had to stand in line--not once. That is so different from the past few years. Especially at Macy's. By the time the store had been open for 2 hours, the registers had at least 4-5 people in each line. Not so today. Everywhere I went and made a purchase (Nordstrom, Macy's, Sephora, American Eagle, and Abercrombie), I was the only person in line. The only store that did have a line was Talbots and that is because the cashier was trying to gift wrap a purchase and they had no other sales help.

I do think people are out and about, but I didn't seem to see a lot of spending going on.

It's really so hard to tell and only the retailers themselves are going to be able to present a true picture of any dropoff in sales.

 

[eliza61]

In August/Sept. the retailers really felt the effect with no one shopping. We refused to shop with clothes so expensive. Aeropostle, American Eagle, Gap, wanted $60 for jeans, that used to run $18-$24. There was no way, we were going to pay that much.

Guess what all those jeans, are now down to that range, plus you got 25-30% off this weekend, plus the sweatshirts and other tops.

So, if your kids were like mine, we just waited for the prices to come down. Yes, we are hit by the economy, but we knew to save our money, till the clothes came down to a reasonable price, in which it did this weekend. We probably won't shop for clothes again till June for some summer clothes.

I said the exact thing to my dh today Mari,
I wanted to treat myself to a nice, heavy sweater (I hate wearing big bulky coats so I love sweaters) went to the mall and saw a few but prices were $150-$200 bucks. Told dh, you know what I'll wait until after Christmas and they'll be at least 1/2 price and I'll still have all of Jan, Feb & March to wear it.